How Music Can Help You Through A Tough Run

As the summer concert season kicks off in June, Kenny Chesney’s Goin’ Costal tour will be hitting such cities as Houston and Cleveland, while Lady GaGa’s Born This Way tour will be making stops in Nashville and Orlando. Whatever your preferred taste may be, music can be an easy addition to enhance your current running regime.

Anyone who favors the use of an iPod or MP3 player will tell you that music makes their run easier. There is a great deal of psychological benefits to listening to music while running. When you hear a song you like, it boosts your mood, leading you to become excited and happy. When such a positive mental state is reached, your mind is in a place where it can best reach its optimal level of performance. In the last half-marathon I completed, I was amazed when the song “If You’re Going Through Hell” by Rodney Atkins that came on at mile 11 instantly gave me the inspiration I needed to complete the race and PR. Being in a positive mental state is a major key to success for runners of all skill levels. Let’s be honest, running is not an easy sport and anything that keeps you positive and upbeat, especially when you are just beginning your training, is going to give you the extra dose of motivation you need to continue to push yourself.

In addition to affecting your mood, listening to music gives your mind something to focus on besides how hard you are breathing or how fatigued your muscles are feeling. By immersing yourself into your playlist while you run, you can begin to forget everything else around you and completely attune your body to the rhythm of the music. Mentally engrossing yourself in the songs, you to forget how hard you are really working. Moreover, music cadence can be used as a means to pace your run. Each song has a constant, unchanging rhythm. While running, we unknowingly begin to adjust our own body rhythm and tempo to match it with the beat of the music we’re listening to. If you are looking to improve your time, simply playing songs with a greater cadence can aid you in your pursuit of a faster run. Ultimately, music will allow your entire run to flow better, improving your overall experience by keeping you focused and at pace.

Today, music is something that is extremely accessible and affordable. With the popularity of smart phones and internet radio applications, such as Pandora, you need not even own an iPod. Your playlist can be easily adjusted and edited to help you with your run. It acts as a great way to spice up your monotonous running routine simply by incorporating new, never-before-ran-to music.

Music, of course, may not be for everyone. If you have never used an iPod or MP3 player during a workout but are considering trying one, I encourage you to start by listening to a wide variety music that you find enjoyable and entertaining. As you continue, you can fine tune your music collection and pinpoint specific songs that put that bounce into your step. It can be utilized to boost your mood during your run and set your pace. It can assist you in building your endurance both mentally and physically. Why not try it out and see what happens.

Running Off The Pounds

Congratulation on making the decision to become part of a wonderful community who all share the same goal to improve their health by embracing the challenge of running. No matter what your running level, this activity is an excellent addition to implement in your weight loss plan. Running is a great way to lose weight, but there are many other components that are essential to reach your ideal weight, and the ability to maintain it. Eating greens, fruits, lean protein, and avoiding processed or sugar packed foods contributes to dropping a few pounds. But most importantly, consuming fewer calories than your body burns during a day will keep you on track for your ideal weight loss.

A good place to start is to calculate your basal metabolic rate, BMR, which determines the amount of calories the body naturally burns when an individual does not exert any energy. For example, the BMR for a 25 year old female, height 5’6’’, and weight 140, is about 1,450 calories. Therefore, getting dressed in the morning, taking the stairs instead of the elevator, and engaging in your daily cardiovascular exercise are all activities that contribute for increasing the body’s ability to burn more calories. The 25-year-old female’s weight is within the healthy range for her height and age; therefore, she most likely consumes more than 1,450 calories and probably the number is closer to 1,800 calories in a day to maintain her weight. And now the big question, how many more calories can you add onto your BMR caloric amount and still lose weight? The simple answer, as previously stated, is to eat fewer calories than your body burns, so your body can begin eliminating unwanted fat that the body is currently storing.

There are many great online sources to calculate how many calories an individual consumes and burns in a day, but a simple way to avoid over-eating is to only eat when you are hungry and stop eating when you are full. However, those two methods can be very difficult to embrace when you are encouraged to consume energy gels or protein bars during or after your workouts. If you are exercising less than 2 hours, than your body probably only needs water and some sort of low sugar sports drink to replace some electrolytes. Anything more will just add on the calories, which unfortunately counteracts the whole purpose of exercising. So the next time you are about to purchase “energy” products save your self some money, and unwanted calories, by filling up a bottle of water instead.